143rd YEAR, No. 144
TUESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2016
ONE DOLLAR
Senior
center
back in
swing
of things
Long-awaited building
upgrade wraps up
By ERICK BENGEL
The Daily Astorian
Photos by Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Anthony Kenne, chief of planning and force readiness with the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Columbia River, speaks to members of the
Coast Guard to go over available shelter and supplies during a tsunami drill Monday.
Any fort in the storm
Quake, tsunami drill tests Coast Guard corps
The Astoria Senior Center of¿cially
reopened on Exchange Street today after a
two-year tenancy at the city’s Yacht Club,
but the day before, a handful of seniors had
already made the freshly renovated center a
part of their routines once again.
While about half a dozen women
showed up to line dance in the new dance
hall, Norm Mullins, of Astoria, broke in
the pool room. The sounds of country pop
blended with the clacking of billiard balls,
and both were drowned out now and then
by the high-pitched buzzing of electric
drills as workmen put the ¿nal touches on
the overhaul.
Standing near the pool table, cue stick in
hand, Mullins, a senior center member for
about ¿ve years, rendered his verdict on the
improvements: “I love it,” he said, laughing.
“A lot better than it was the last time.”
By KYLE SPURR
The Daily Astorian
See SENIOR CENTER, Page 4A
W
hen the men and women of
U.S. Coast Guard Sector
Columbia River came to work
Monday morning, they were told they
had 20 minutes to reach Fort Clatsop.
In a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake,
20 minutes is about all the time residents would
get to ¿nd higher ground.
For the evacuation drill, about 100 members
left their posts near the Astoria Regional Airport
and ran 1.4 miles to the fort in Lewis and Clark
National Historical Park, where the Coast Guard
would set up an incident command center in an
actual emergency.
Anthony Kenne, chief of planning and force
readiness with the Coast Guard, said the guard
was searching for a location that was relatively
close, out of the tsunami zone and had existing
infrastructure.
The evacuation drill was staged the day
before the 316th anniversary of what scientists
believe was the last large Cascadia earthquake
and tsunami on Jan. 26, 1700.
The Coast Guard sector sits at just 11 feet
above sea level. In a Cascadia event, the sector
could drop to 1 foot above sea level. It could be
underwater within 20 minutes.
“We were looking for a good evacuation
site. Something that was high ground, close
proximity to the sector,” Kenne said.
Red stickers were placed on those who did
not make it to Fort Clatsop on time, which was
almost half of the group. Kenne warned the
group that if they are unable to reach the fort,
they must turn off the route and head toward
other high ground on nearby farmland. From
there, it could take a day before reaching the fort.
“Head to those ¿rst if you know it’s going to
take longer than 20 minutes,” Kenne told the group.
See DRILL, Page 12A
A totem
for a tribe
Local arts grant to
pay for statue of
Clatsop tribesman
By NANCY McCARTHY
For EO Media Group
Anthony Kenne speaks to members of the Coast Guard about places to find high
ground during an earthquake and tsunami drill Monday.
CANNON BEACH — A 10-foot tall
welcoming pole in the ¿gure of a Clatsop
tribesman may soon be installed in
NeCus’ Park at the former Cannon Beach
Elementary School playground.
The city’s arts advisory committee has
recommended that its annual $10,000 grant
for public art be spent on the statue, to be
carved from a cedar pole. Before the pole
is formally commissioned, however, it must
be approved by the city’s design review
board, which will consider it in February.
City Manager Brant Kucera will have the
¿nal say about whether the statue should be
purchased.
The arts committee approved the pole,
proposed by the city’s Palette Group, during
a meeting this month.
The pole will be carved by Quinault,
Washington, artist Guy Capoeman, who
has carved other poles and canoes. Some of
Capoeman’s relatives belong to the Clatsop,
Nehalem and Tillamook tribes, according
to Dick Basch, vice chairman of the Clat-
sop-Nehalem Tribe.
Safety and survival equipment are shown in the back of a truck during a tsunami drill.
See TOTEM, Page 12A
Lady Gulls are ‘tough and together’
Enter your baby
in The Daily
Astorian’s Cutest
Baby Contest for
2015
Teamwork keeps
girls pressing
toward goals
If your baby was born
between Jan 1st & Dec
By KATHERINE LACAZE
EO Media Group
31st
2015 ,
you
can
submit
your
newborn’s picture either via email at
SEASIDE — What do
Seaside’s Lady Gulls bring to
the table besides one of the
top 4A basketball programs
in the state and a respectable
record heading into Cowapa
League play? Eleven dedicated
student-athletes who offer each
other support and compan-
ionship as they strive to meet
personal goals in each facet
of life, set good examples for
younger players and deliver
their best behavior on and off
the court.
classifieds@dailyastorian.com or drop by
one of our offices in Astoria or Seaside
and we can scan in the photo for you.
Deadline to enter is Tuesday,
January 26th at 5:00 pm .
Entries will be printed in The
Daily Astorian on January 29th.
Jeff Ter Har/For EO Media Group
See GULLS, Page 7A
of
The Gulls share camaraderie on and off the court.